The Future of the Grimleyplex?

I’m happy with the Grimleyplex at the moment, however this hobby of ‘Home Cinema’ is an ever changing process with new technologies coming out all the time, so temptation to upgrade is always there. Not so much now as it was when I was younger because it doesn’t get much use as I would like these days. I’ve tended to spend more on computers than Home Cinema in the last few years. The Coffee Machine, an Electric Grinder, a top class hand grinder and a laptop for internet browsing on the go has been the main spend in 2017.

I’ve spent a lot of money collecting Videos, DVD’s & HD-DVD’s over the years. I’ve replaced almost all of them with Blu-Ray discs, which has been a fairly slow & expensive process (I thought replacing my VHS video collection was expensive too!) Blu-ray will probably be my last disc based collection. I replace the blu-rays when I think a better version of a Blu-Ray becomes available,though my purchases now are getting few and far between. 4K UHD blu-ray’s aren’t any point as far as I am concerned as I do not currently own any 4k displays, that will only be done when one of the current displays pack up.

All the old HD-DVD’s & most of the DVD’s that I’ve replaced with Blu-Ray, I’ve sold on ebay or various forum classified ads. I tend not to go the the cinema much these days, I now wait for a while after the DVD/Blu-ray release & buy it then or I stream a copy from the Internet.

Now that HD film streaming is common & affordable, I’m using a couple of streaming services at last. I’m on Amazon Prime, I’ve rented a fair few films on Google play too, Chromecast I can recommend wholehartedly.

An upgrade to a better projector has now been done in March 2016, I got it for a good price second hand, but it will not be used much as I want these days (once a month on average so far since 2016), I’m not made of money you know, despite what some of my friends say!

I now have a AV receiver with more HDMI Inputs with the ability to use my phone or tablet as a remote over my network, which I bought in February 2016 second hand.

I just want to state on here (this my website after all!) I have NO INTENTION WHATSOEVER of ‘upgrading’ to 3D, because I think its crap & is a fad! I’m not really interested in 4k or 8k, as I won’t get the benefit of it. Dolby Atmos/DTS/X = 32 Channels of Surround sound? Too many speakers in my room already methinks.
A bigger telly will be bought when the old one packs up.

I could be moving house at any point in the future, so all the gear & discs may well have to go & that will be the end of the Grimleyplex!. I won’t know that until the move is made! It may continue though, the telly & projector may be changed for one big telly & the receiver may be changed for a soundbar or a decent set of headphones!

I’ve got I want at last (6.1 HD sound & picture & a BIG Screen) I’ve accommodated the projector, but its ventilation may be obstructed by being in the wardrobe, only time & use will tell. (been OK so far though during the last 15 years!)

To be honest, I’m beginning to use the Home Cinema as much as I used to, despite my workload being increased significantly & the early morning weekday starts, so I’m knackered when I come home most days & I surf the Internet a fair bit too. So using it has taken a back seat for some time to come, as I now have other priorities.

(I socialise a lot more than I used to, plus I help around the house more these days too) I am trying to use it more often, I watch the odd football match on it during the world cup or European championships, I also try to watch more classic films on the projector just to see what its like to watch those kind of films on a “BIG SCREEN”!

My bedroom is only 10′ x 13′, so it has been a lot of hassle to upgrade it to 6.1 & install a big screen, including wiring an extra speaker or via the loft. Over 30 years of system building and spending over £30k on Home Cinema hardware, software & computers, It’s been hard work and one hell of a ride!!